low-quality toggle switches on rics?

[eljayski]

i wouldn't think so, but both my 360 and 381 aren't working on the neck pups. i flip the switches and hear scratchiness. none of my other guitars with toggles, gibson, carvin, heritage, has this issue. irritating, it is . . .

tempted to change out the switches. anyone else experiencing this problem?

[Grey]

How old are the guitars, are you the original ower, what condition are they in, when did they simultaneously stop working, etc. etc.

[eljayski]

both purchased in 2010; i'm original owner; both in pristine condition, never leave the house.

[aceonbass]

You should have a look under the guard to see if the problem might be a simple fix, such as dust on the contacts, An errant wire grounding out, or corrosion. The pickup selectors in RIC's have always been high quality Switchcraft parts.

[rkbsound]

I have 3 Ricks and if I don't play one for a while, the switch gets very touchy. I have also found this to be the case with other brands, too.

[jps]

i wouldn't think so, but both my 360 and 381 aren't working on the neck pups.

You're not using a mono cable out of the ROS jack, by chance, are you?

[aceonbass]

Plugging a mono cable into the ROS jack on a stock Rick will ONLY give you the neck pickup, so that can't be the problem.

[jps]

Sorry, I had it backwards! Tells you how often I use ROS.

[paologregorio]

I was going to say...

I am a big fan of the toggle switch wiggle. I've sprayed de-oxit occasionally into the toggles, but other than that, I have yet to replace a Rick toggle switch; they are tough!

[JakeK]

I am a big fan of the toggle switch wiggle.

Inspired by Townshend or Dave Davies?

I had a scratchy selector switch on my 360/12 last year, creating an unpleasant distorted sound. When I took the pickguard off, I noticed that there was quite a bit of dust on the selector contacts, took a Qtip to it, and hey presto, the distortion went away and has never been back.

[collin]

I think they all get switches from the same company (switchcraft), who has made them for decades. Gibson, Rickenbacker, Fender, Gretsch...all of em.

[stsang]

Plugging a mono cable into the ROS jack on a stock Rick will ONLY give you the neck pickup, so that can't be the problem.

It's the other way around - you'll only get the bridge pickup. Try it for yourself to verify.

[jps]

Plugging a mono cable into the ROS jack on a stock Rick will ONLY give you the neck pickup, so that can't be the problem.

It's the other way around - you'll only get the bridge pickup. Try it for yourself to verify.

Ahh, so I was right!

[cassius987]

Plugging a mono cable into the ROS jack on a stock Rick will ONLY give you the neck pickup, so that can't be the problem.

It's the other way around - you'll only get the bridge pickup. Try it for yourself to verify.

+1

[Tommy]

anyone else experiencing this problem?

Yes, I am experiencing it.

My 20 year old 360/12 has a dodgey switch. It sputters, it cuts out, I have to shake it a bit until it gets the pickups I selected going. It's been doing that for a few years. I am hoping all that is required to fix is some contact spray. Just never get around to doing it. Honestly, my switch is always in the middle position. I rarely flick it to any other. But when I do...it sputters, it cuts out....

Maybe try what the others suggest -- just a shot of contact spray onto the switch. I'm going to do it one day, that stuff works. I had amp knobs that sputtered and crackled and a quick shot of the spray cured them.